The Natural World

 


Our theme this half term has been ‘The Natural World’. We have been learning about natural materials and finding out where they come from and what they can be used for. We have talked about the differences between materials that come from the ground, such as rocks and crystals and those materials that come from living things, such as wood, cotton, silk and paper. We have also been talking about how weather shapes the environment, comparing hot, wet climates such as the Rainforest with cold, dry places such as the Gobi Desert. We made rain gauges to measure the rainfall over the space of a week and recorded it on a chart.

We then spent some time focusing on wood and what it is most commonly used for. We found out that paper is originally made from wood. It is processed into tiny wood chips and mixed with various chemicals to make pulp, which in turn, is used to make paper. As we had been talking about the importance to the environment of trees and recycling, we decided to mix both ideas together and make our own paper!
 
making paper

Using natural materials as a starting point, we have also been exploring the work of a British sculptor called Andy Goldsworthy. He uses natural materials such as wood, stone and clay to create amazing sculptures, using the materials and patterns in nature to inspire his work. We have spent a lot of time studying and thinking about his artwork, looking at the way he uses colour, texture and pattern in his sculptures. We have drawn our own designs, tried out some of our ideas at school and we recently spent a day up in Highgate Woods creating our own work using a mixture of wood and natural textiles.

We made natural sculptures in Highgate Woods